Pitt led by as many as 20 points in the second half in the JMA Wireless Dome over Syracuse, but had to hang on for dear life in an 84-82 win over the Orange. Judah Mintz's jump shot sailed off the mark as time expired and Pitt escaped with a two-point victory in a game that was much closer that it should have been.

The Panthers grabbed the lead for good at the 14:43 mark of the first half, but had to fight off a furious rally from the home team to preserve the victory. With the win, Pitt moved to 9-4 on the season, and 2-0 in ACC play. It is the first time Pitt is 2-0 in conference play since the Panthers started the 2015-16 3-0.

Pitt did not make a field goal in the final 6:23 of the game, and survived solely on foul shots. Meanwhile, Syracuse amped up the defensive pressure and cut a double digit lead down to one point. Senior guard Joe Girard buried a high-difficulty three-pointer with :29 seconds left. On Syracuse's final two possessions, Mintz committed a turnover and missed an off-balanced shot.

Mintz was stellar otherwise. The one-time Pitt commit led the Orange with 24 points and kept his team around by himself throughout much of the game. He scored 15 second half points.

Despite the less than ideal finish, for much of the game Pitt looked really good and outplayed Syracuse rather easily. The Panthers received a stellar performance from Blake Hinson, who finished with a game-high 25 points and 13 rebounds. Senior guard Nelly Cummings was right behind him with 22 points on the strength of six made three-pointers.

Pitt seized control of the game in the early stages of the first half thanks to a 16-2 run. Pitt grabbed a 23-12 advantage on back-to-back threes from Hinson and senior Jamarius Burton. The Panthers continued to play with a lead for the remainder of the first half and took a 41-33 advantage into the break.

Jeff Capel's team looked up to the task in the second half with a quick 8-2 spurt out of the break to extend the lead to 49-35, which forced veteran Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim to call a timeout.

The Panthers continued to assert control and ran the lead up to 72-52 with 10:45 remaining. Pitt maintained a double digit lead until Quadir Copeland's four-point play with 4:59 left in the game.

The final stretch was filled with turnovers from the Panthers, as Syracuse extended the defensive pressure and kept Pitt out of rhythm. In the end, Pitt was able to come away with a win after a whirlwind finish.

Pitt once again played without starting center John Hugley, who traveled with the team, but did not dress. Federiko Federiko and Jorge Diaz Graham combined for 16 points and 10 rebounds accounting for all 40 minutes at the center spot.

Capel kept a short bench on Tuesday. Cummings, Burton, Hinson, and Greg Elliott did not leave the floor at all in the second half, and sixth man Nike Sibande only played six minutes against the Orange.

The Panthers are off for ten days and will return to action on December 30th when they welcome preseason ACC favorite North Carolina to town for a noon tip at the Petersen Events Center.